Ideas from the History of Graphic Design

About this course

This intensive survey examines four pivotal eras in the History of Western Graphic Design, tracing the evolution of visual communication from the Industrial Revolution through the mid-20th century. While the global history of design is vast, this course focuses specifically on the Euro-American narrative to illustrate how mass production and Western modernist principles established the foundations of today’s professional design standards. Students will analyze how the relationship between words and pictures shifted across social, political, and technological contexts in Europe and the United States. By investigating the works of innovative Western groups—from the Victorian era to the Bauhaus and American Modernism—learners develop a technical and conceptual toolkit to inform their own contemporary practice. This course is an essential foundation for emerging designers seeking to understand the specific historical forces that shaped the "modern" aesthetic and its subsequent radical reactions.